Post: #1

My name is Emily and I am fully committed to this challenge. My body deserves a fresh start for 2012 and I am ready to feel healthier and more energized than ever before.

I see 2012 as being a very powerful year and my intention for this challenge to is refresh my body, my mind and my spirit so I that am ready for all the new adventures life is bringing my way.

Here are my healthy living plans for the next 21 days:

Exercise: I plan to incorporate power walks, running, stairs, yoga, Pilates, dancing and gym time into my routine.

Diet: I am going to keep hydrated and drink 8 or more glasses of water a day, take my vitamins, make sure I eat breakfast, have protein snacks throughout the day, include salads and vegetables in my lunch and make a habit of not eating past 9 pm. I am going to watch my portion size and fill up on things that have good nutritional value.

Lifestyle: Each night I will either spend some time meditating or doing some inspirational reading. I will shoot for 8 hours of sleep a night and rise each morning to a cup of green tea. Lastly, I will journalize my progress here, even if it is brief.

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #2

Hey Emily! You seem to know exactly what you need to do. Thats great! I'm inspired!
I'd like to follow something similar - like meditating, inspirational reading and so on!
Looking forward to your progress posts
Have fun

Post: #3

Hey Nim! Nice to meet you and I look forward to your posts as well We must share some of our best inspirational reading with each other, I will send you one soon

I'm so excited to be sharing this journey with everyone on PE. Its going to be such an awesome year for all of us! ** smiles, Emily

(12-30-2011 08:26 PM)nimiprem Wrote:  Hey Emily! You seem to know exactly what you need to do. Thats great! I'm inspired!
I'd like to follow something similar - like meditating, inspirational reading and so on!
Looking forward to your progress posts
Have fun

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Catch up Post: PREWORK

My ideal vision for my health/fitness/lifestyle would be to have a slender toned body that weighs about 110-120 lbs. My legs would be strong and my stomach would be flat and somewhat defined. I would still have curves, keeping my butt perky and in shape! I think a dancer’s body would suit me well, and of course I would be keeping up with dance, yoga and meditation. I would be flexible and could do cardio without getting tired. My lifestyle would include bursts of fitness like swimming, running, hiking and tennis. I would treat my body well, eat healthy, spend my energy wisely and be a happy and active person.

At the end of 21DHL I would like to have accomplished giving my body, mind and spirit the refresh that it needed to better equip myself for the new adventures of 2012. I see 2012 being a very powerful and big year for me so I want to start off the first month by clearing away old habits. I want to bring the new Emily into existence that has been waiting to come out – a well balanced, positive, active, and healthy excited new ME!

The key things that will help me live true to my 21 Day Healthy Living Plan are:

1. Making a point to post my daily results and reflections
2. Having healthy foods on hand, at work or at home
3. Segmenting windows of time for activity and fitness 3-5 times a week
4. Reading inspiration and motivational articles each day
5. Drinking enough water to curb my hungry because the brain doesn’t know the difference between being hungry and thirsty, reach for the H20!

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #4

Day 1

I haven’t had access to the internet for the past few days as I was bringing in the New Year at a cabin in what I could only describe as Winter Wonderland. As today is Jan 2nd, I have a little catching up to do on my posts.

Already, I am starting to see progress in the way I feel and have even gotten a head start on my biggest goal for 2012. This is the year for me to discover my hidden passions by trying an abundance of new things and activities that are of interest to me. On the day of Dec 31st I tried snowboarding for the first time. It was an incredible experience. I have never been a very active person so it was a great challenge for my body. My muscles are still recovering from the twists and turns of the mountain, but the sense of accomplishment I feel overrides my body’s aches and pains.

Today, when I pulled up the task for Day 1, I smiled. Because even though I didn’t have internet yesterday, I was on the same page as I made it my goal to drink 8 glasses of water. It felt amazing to make even the smallest shift in my daily habits and it was a fairly easy task to complete. The only down side I have found so far to drinking lots of water is that I have to go the bathroom more frequently, and the road trip back home today from the cabin surely put that to the test!

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #5

Hi Emily..congrats on trying snowboarding. I know that for me and most people I've shared rookie boarding stories with, the first day sucked and then at some point on the 2nd day, things clicked and J-turns became a lot easier.

Your goals seems quite solid and the approach in your diet is definitely acheivable with a little discipline. I'm actually interested in meditation as well but am not quite sure where to start. I assume there are some tips on meditation to be found on this site.

Good luck..I'll be checking in on you !

There is nothing so fatal to character as half finished tasks. - David Lloyd George
We rate ability in men by what they finish, not by what they attempt. - Harry F Banks

Post: #6

Hi Emily..congrats on trying snowboarding. I know that for me and most people I've shared rookie boarding stories with, the first day sucked and then at some point on the 2nd day, things clicked and J-turns became a lot easier.

Your goals seems quite solid and the approach in your diet is definitely acheivable with a little discipline. I'm actually interested in meditation as well but am not quite sure where to start. I assume there are some tips on meditation to be found on this site.

Good luck..I'll be checking in on you !

There is nothing so fatal to character as half finished tasks. - David Lloyd George
We rate ability in men by what they finish, not by what they attempt. - Harry F Banks

Post: #7

DAY 2

Today I felt less hungry than usual and I’m thinking that’s due to all the water I have been drinking. I slugged back 7 bottles today and I feel great. I have started my own personal Calorie List and will continue adding items that I commonly eat.

Here is my calorie list for today’s task:

1 orange
½ of an Everything bagel w/ cream cheese
1 cup of Activia vanilla yogurt
1 mini Babybel cheese
Caesar salad
Beef cannelloni

Total Calories: 1252
Total Calories from Fat: 623

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"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #8

Hi emily!

You seem to be on a solid way to complete the challenge. I think your aspiration to read 1 motivational/inspirational article is great and i would like to incorporate that to my plan as well!

Best of luck with the challenge and i look forward to see your progress.

Post: #9

DAY 3

Step 1: Calculate TDEE

1) BMR = 1410
2) 1410 x 1.2 = 1692 calories I burn a day
3) 1692 + 138 (calorie output via exercise) = 1830

* The calorie output is my normal everyday walk to work (I have not chose to add the 8 hrs of "sitting quietly" as the Calorie Burner suggested because I do not consider sitting at my desk a workout).

If I choose further exercise, my TDEE would be higher. Such as today because I hit the gym, my TDEE = 1980

Step 2: Calculate calories intake per day to achieve weight goal

1) Current weight (130 lbs.) – Ideal weight (120 lbs.) = 10 lbs difference
2) 10lbs x 3500 = 35,000 total calories I need to lose.
3) 35,000 / 56 days (end of February) = 625 calories per day to achieve ideal weight.

Therefore I need to eat 625 less calories (vs. my TDEE) or burn 625 more calories (via exercising) to achieve my ideal weight of 118 lbs by the end of February.

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #10

DAY 4

STEP 1: Here is my Ideal Meal Plan for a normal day:

Breakfast
• 2 Mediterranean scrambled eggs with mushrooms, spinach & feta
• 1 piece of whole wheat toast with 2 tablespoons of peanut butter
• ½ cup of Activia vanilla yogurt with ¼ cup sliced strawberries
• Glass of orange juice with pulp

Lunch
• 1 ½ cups of asparagus or leek soup
• Grilled chicken sandwich with avocado, tomato, onion & romaine

Dinner
• Mixed green salad with grape tomatoes, cucumber, goat cheese & pecans, balsamic vinaigrette
• Pesto Linguine with chicken and zucchini

STEP 2:

To check the calories, fat content & nutritional value of these items I created an excel document and in the end my total daily calories added up to... 2669!

I was shocked! I thought I had choose fairly healthy meals, but obvisiously this doesn't don’t fit in with my TDEE of 1830 unless I incorporated much more exercise into my routine. Although many of the items I selected are of good nutritional value, they are too high in calories.

2669 (Calories a day in ideal meal plan for normal day) minus 1830 (TDEE) = 839 calories too many!!!

I guess I will be revising my ideal “super-healthy” ideal meal plan to better fit my TDEE.

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #11

Hi Emily. Wow..your meal plan looks totally reasonable so I'm surprised to see it total over 2600 ! A couple of easy places you can cut
1) Get rid of the OJ. I LOVE OJ and can easily finish a 2 LT Tropicana in a day. But there's a tonne of sugar in it. I read an article that had a great line : Don't drink your calories. So if you really want the orange-y goodness, eat an orange.
2) Peanuts butter is about 100 calories per tbsp. Reduce it from 2 to 1.
3) Pasta is heavy in calories, so consider a different carb.

There is nothing so fatal to character as half finished tasks. - David Lloyd George
We rate ability in men by what they finish, not by what they attempt. - Harry F Banks

Post: #12

Hi Emily. Wow..your meal plan looks totally reasonable so I'm surprised to see it total over 2600 ! A couple of easy places you can cut
1) Get rid of the OJ. I LOVE OJ and can easily finish a 2 LT Tropicana in a day. But there's a tonne of sugar in it. I read an article that had a great line : Don't drink your calories. So if you really want the orange-y goodness, eat an orange.
2) Peanuts butter is about 100 calories per tbsp. Reduce it from 2 to 1.
3) Pasta is heavy in calories, so consider a different carb.

There is nothing so fatal to character as half finished tasks. - David Lloyd George
We rate ability in men by what they finish, not by what they attempt. - Harry F Banks

Post: #13

DAY 5

Today I got a variety of yummy things from the supermarket. Because I will be changing my ideal meal plan, I skipped out on a few items which I originally planned on earlier (i.e. pasta, orange juice (thanks David) & creamy soups). Here are some of the things I picked out:

• Vector cereal (22 essential vitamins & minerals in one serving)
• Whole wheat bread
• Fibre one bars
• Almonds
• Bananas
• Peaches & Gala apples (the best kind)
• Tomatoes & cucumber
• Avocados
• Mushrooms
• Yams
• Eggs
• Beef Barley & Lentil soups (healthier choices)
• Veggie samosas
• Salmon & Chicken
• Deli sliced Turkey breast

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DAY 6

Follow your ideal meal Plan ~

Well I honestly say that I missed this task today because I had not re-created my ideal meal plan in time. However, I WILL re-write my meal plan today and have something reasonable that follows my TDEE and the groceries I picked up yesterday.

More on this to come...

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #14

DAY 7

Review & Plan for Week 2

For each of the past 6 days I have:

• Taken my vitamins (Multi & Omega 3)
• Drank 8+ glasses of water
• Substituted green tea for coffee when I could
• Cut out all junk food and snacking past 9 pm
• Flossed, brushed & whitened teeth
• Read at least one inspirational article

Q & A

1. On a scale of 1-10, I would rate my satisfaction with my health and fitness for the past week at a 6. I have noticed I am feeling good and less sluggish. My energy has increased and now I am ready to go harder this upcoming week and incorporate more fitness, meditation and calorie counting. I feel that for the past 6 days, I have made some great changes, but I haven’t challenged myself enough. And after all, this IS a 21 day challenge.

2. As mentioned, I feel like I haven’t challenged myself enough physically. Over the past 6 days, I took one trip to the gym, did one power walk and one morning meditation.

3. I learnt from these incidences that if I am not setting aside the time for physical activity then I will forgot about it and not make it a priority. I need to put my work-out commitments on my calendar for this week and follow through with a check list.

4. Moving forward, I could keep a food journal for each day to watch my calorie in-take, tape a check-list onto the bathroom mirror of things I want to make sure I am doing and add fitness commitments into my calendar.

ACTION PLAN – My Goals for Week 2

1. Follow TDEE (1830 calories) and goal of eating 625 less calories or burning 625 calories a day.
• I will need to eat 1205 calories a day if I do not exercise
• I plan to exercise 3-4 times this week
• The activities I will choose are: jogging, dancing, Pilates & cardio at the gym

2. Keep a food diary and track the calories and the times I regularly eat at. Review the results and make any changes I need to for week 3.

3. Meditate every day even if it’s just for 15 minutes. I have been having trouble falling asleep some nights and with meditation I will clear out the thoughts for a better sleep.

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #15

What an awesome work out I had today. I spent 2 solid hours at the gym: 1 hour and 40 minutes working out & 20 minutes in the steam room! I stretched, did weights, crunches, the Stairmaster (60 steps a minute x 10 minutes), a 15 walk/run on the treadmill and 15 minutes on the bike pushing hard at level 8 setting: random. I felt like a million bucks after a hot steam and a cold shower.

Weight lifting – 30 minutes – 50 calories
Walk/run – 15 minutes – 100 calories
Stairmaster – 10 minutes – 100 calories
Biking – 15 minutes - 150 calories
Steam room – 20 minutes – 100? (They say this can burn calories, though I’m not sure)

Total calories burnt at the gym = 500

What I ate today: vector cereal (315 calories) – banana (105) – turkey, avocado, tomato, Swiss cheese sandwich on whole wheat bread (336) – Activia yogurt (110) – 1 piece pepperoni pizza (I know terrible, but I only had one slice: 220 calories)

Total calories consumed = 1086

My TDD = 1830
The goal I worked out on Day 2 stated that I need to either consume 625 calories less a day or burn 625 calories a day to get to my ideal weight. Today I burnt 500 calories and consumed 744 calories less. I way over-achieved my goal and this was not intentional, but it sounds good to me. Today was an exception, but for the rest of the challenge I think it would be wise to maintain my goal of eating 625 calories less or burning 625 calories a day.

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #16

Wow, you did a great workout!
2 hours in the gym is amazing. The longest I've been is 45 minutes, I think (on the treadmill and spinning)

Just a curiosity, did you feel hungry at all on that day?

Post: #17

DAY 9 & 10

For the past two days I have fallen behind on my posts and unfortunately opened the daily tasks up too late in the day to start them. However, I have been sticking to my healthy foods though and I plan on going for another work out tomorrow night.

Because I missed two of the tasks, I am going to incorporate them both into my day on Wednesday after I pick up some more fruits, veggies and green tea. I’m looking forward to it and I think doing them both together will be beneficial. No caffeine, but more fruits and veggies.

I will update my Day 9 & 10 posts when I have completed those tasks.

In regards to your question Evelyn: surprisingly I wasn’t that hungry. I know that didn’t seem like a lot of calories especially after a big work out, but I think it has something to do with my water consumption. I have been drinking more than 8 glasses a day and I have noticed it is curbing my appetite. I feel like the more H20 I drink, the less food my body needs when it comes time to eat as if I get full faster.

Also, a little while ago I read somewhere that the brain doesn’t know the difference between being hungry and being thirsty, hence the reason why we sometimes tend to snack a lot more even though what our body really needs is hydration. I came across a good little article on this tonight too: http://www.livestrong.com/article/441564...d-thirsty/

I'm curious to know your's and other's thoughts on this. How is your water consumption going? And does it effect your appetite?

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *

Post: #18

Hey Emily..I've read in a couple of places before that when you think you're hungry, you're actually thirsty and drinking a glass of water will help the hunger pangs go away. I'm experience the same thing as you..because of the increased water intake, I'm needing less food to stay full.
BTW..where in Canada are you ?

There is nothing so fatal to character as half finished tasks. - David Lloyd George
We rate ability in men by what they finish, not by what they attempt. - Harry F Banks

Post: #19

Hey Emily..I've read in a couple of places before that when you think you're hungry, you're actually thirsty and drinking a glass of water will help the hunger pangs go away. I'm experience the same thing as you..because of the increased water intake, I'm needing less food to stay full.
BTW..where in Canada are you ?

There is nothing so fatal to character as half finished tasks. - David Lloyd George
We rate ability in men by what they finish, not by what they attempt. - Harry F Banks

Post: #20

DAY 11

I can honestly say yes, there have many times I have detracted from my healthy living plans. Actually come to think of it I have pretty much quit every time...up until now!

1) Tempting food usually got the best of me and my perfectionist attitude. Once I had cheated the diet, decided one fail was too many and quit the whole routine. My style now is different. I think that even if you make some mistakes along the way you can and should continue. Just because you gave in a little, it doesn’t mean you have to give up.

2) Another thing that led me to a healthy living pitfall was I never really wrote out my goals or chose things that were attainable. But now, Personal Excellence has provided me with all the motivation and support I need to complete my 21DHL. It has given me a template to create the goals I want for myself and combines the perfect amount of self-direction and community support.

3) I also think that having a set number of days (21 being easily achievable) gives you a timeline to work with. Of course we all would hope that after the 21 days everyone will continue incorporating health into their lifestyle, but it doesn’t always work out that way. And even though I plan on keeping healthy after the 21 days, it helps to know that if I really wanted to go back to my old habits (which I don’t) I could in a matter of short time.

I am stoked to still feel motivated and after noticing a flatter stomach and heightened energy levels...why would I want to stop now?

Note to others: After researching a few health topics online, I kept seeing the same website pop-up over and over again. So tonight I took a further look and found that the site is a really practical guide to healthy living. LiveStrong lets you set up a profile, a weight-loss goal, record food items (a huge database), record you calories burnt from fitness AND keeps all the information in line with your desired calorie intake (based on your weight loss goal). It’s a really easy way to record your stuff and track all the nutritional value in your foods. (Also, they have an iphone app.) Check it out: http://www.livestrong.com/

"Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness."

Embrace ~ Enlighten ~ Empower

* Emily *